Cartoon Saturday

Well, it's been quite a week, hasn't it?

Former Vice President, Senator, and Defense Secretary Dick Cheney died at the age of 94; in a colossal repudiation of the administration and its policies, a blue wave swept Democrats into offices across the nation; a UPS cargo aircraft crashed in a huge fireball while taking off from Louisville, Kentucky; as a direct result of the foolish "shutdown" of the federal government, air traffic has been snarled and food assistance for poor Americans has been stopped; former House Speaker Nancy Pelosi announced her decision to retire at the end of her current Congressional term; and in a move to decisively improve accountability and public safety, the Massachusetts State Police spent nearly $70,000 a month on a sophisticated GPS tracking system for its police cruisers, but equipped hundreds of the cars with a “kill switch” that allows officers to disable the tracking.

Another potpourri collection of cartoons this week ... 

This is not a good sign for the relationship ...

"This saw doesn't work!" "You're holding it backwards." "This saw doesn't work!"

There was definitely some emphatic voting this week ...

This is absolutely a magazine I need ...

This is how my blog actually started out ...

I'm sure this is part of Project 2025 and the Der Furor Legacy Project ...

Perhaps she should have asked first ...

The Congressional GOP approach to concerns about SNAP, Medicaid, and similar programs ...

A ... wrenching ... memory, indeed ...

I'd buy the set in a heartbeat ...

And that's it for this week's collection of random cartoons - I hope you enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed compiling it.

Have a good day and a great weekend. More thoughts tomorrow, when Poetry Sunday counsels patience. See you then!

Bilbo

Great Moments in Editing and Signage

It's Friday, it's a new month, and it's time once again to call out our great moments ... which are getting better all the time!

I preferred the recipe before the correction ...

There's either an echo or you're really going the wrong way ...

Well, it would, wouldn't it? ...

Uh ... I think I'll try a different hotel ...

Most of us have ham or turkey ...

Sounds like the right place to me ...

This about sums up this administration's economy ...

Boy, you've got that right ...

I hear there's a copy editor looking for a new job ...

I'm not sure people who can't spell the name of their party should be drafting laws ...

And that's it for your first collection of Great Moments in Editing and Signage for November - I hope it helped take your mind off the cosmic horrors coming out of Washington.

Have a good day and come back tomorrow for Cartoon Saturday - more thoughts then.

Bilbo

Musical Sunday

This week I'll celebrate my 74th birthday. I often wonder that I've made it this far, given that I grew up full of vaccines, drank water from the garden hose, rode in the back of open pickup trucks (and the bucket of Mr Schmedlap's earth mover), and walked long distances after dark to visit friends. But I've made it this far and - as today's song suggests - you can tell the road hasn't always been easy ...  

Have a good day and enjoy the rest of your weekend. Hope you look better than I do.

More thoughts coming.

Bilbo

Cartoon Saturday

I'd like to believe that November will be better than October was. I believe in unicorns and a functioning  government, too.

The Navy's carrier USS Nimitz, operating in the South China Sea earlier this week, lost two aircraft - a helicopter and an FA-18 jet fighter - in 30 minutes in separate accidents; hurricane Melissa left a vast swath of death and devastation across Jamaica; in his latest attempt to secure a Nobel Peace Prize, Der Furor announced a resumption of nuclear weapon tests "because of other countries' testing programs," although no country except North Korea has tested a live nuclear weapon in this century; the administration has decided to restrict the number of refugees it admits into the US to 7,500 in 2026, and most of those will be white South Africans; Britain's Prince Andrew became the latest casualty of the Epstein affair, being stripped of his title as "Prince" and all of the benefits that came with it; and in Massachusetts, an employee in the governor's office was arrested after receiving 8kg of cocaine at his desk.

I've been too busy lately to spend time organizing my cartoon file, so for the next couple of weeks, we'll just do the random cartoon thing. There are plenty of great ones out there, and not all of them are political ... but some of the better ones are.

Be sure to buy the right one ...

It's not as funny as you might think ...

Me, neither ...

Thank goodness my passport is up to date ...

It looks like a good investment opportunity to me ...

Been there, done that ...

I think they'll be looking for a long, long time ...

Nowadays, I always check when the doorbell rings. Of course, some visitors don't bother to ring ...

The part they left out of the story of the Frog Prince ...

Translation: the first speed trap, 1257 AD ...

And that's it for our first Cartoon Saturday of November. Don't forget that Tuesday is Election Day ... if you're not registered to vote, see if your state allows same-day registration (Virginia does). If you are registered and haven't voted early, make sure you get your lazy backside to your local precinct and cast your vote. It's your duty as a citizen.

Have a good day and a great weekend. More thoughts coming.

Bilbo

The On-Crack Ass Clown for October, 2025

The month of October offers not the usual two, but three Fridays on which we can heap scorn on those who represent the highest standards of ass clownery ... and there is certainly no shortage of those.

As the needless and petulant shutdown of Congress approaches its first full month, I think it's only appropriate for us to consider the current and former members of that body who have done the most to contribute to the degradation of the branch of government closest to the needs and voices of average Americans.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear Readers, I present the tinfoil and toilet paper crown designating 

The On-Crack Ass Clown for October, 2025

to

Newt Gingrich,

Kevin McCarthy,

Mike Johnson

and

Mitch McConnell

Three of the four co-winners (Messrs Gingrich, McCarthy, and Johnson) have served as Speaker of the House of Representatives, and Mr McConnell was the Senate Majority Leader, and each in his own way made major contributions to the debasement both of Congress as a whole and of their once-honorable positions.

A number of scholars have credited Newt Gingrich with playing a key role in undermining democratic norms and hastening political polarization and partisan prejudice in the United States. In particular, his direction to Republicans to use negative terms such as "radical," "sick," and "traitors" to describe Democrats foreshadowed the crass and vituperative language of today's supporters of Der Furor. In 1997, he became the first Speaker of the House to be disciplined for ethics violations. He resigned from the House on January 3, 1999, the same day his term as speaker ended, and he remains a vocal supporter of Der Furor and his baseless claims of fraud in the 2022 presidential election.

Kevin McCarthy's term as Speaker of the House began with a marathon series of 15 ballots before his election, and the various incompatible deals and promises he made to individual House members and factions to gain their votes led to a ... less-than-productive ... term. He was voted out of the Speaker's position after nine turbulent months - the third-shortest tenure for a Speaker in American history, and the first speaker to ever be removed from his position during a legislative session.

Mr McCarthy was succeeded by Mike Johnson of Louisiana, a small and petty man whose slavish dedication to Der Furor has led to a needless government shutdown and inflicted untold damage on the economy and reputation not only of Congress, but of the nation. Rather than negotiate in good faith with his Democratic opponents, he has kept the House out of session to prevent any legislative activity, insisting that it is the responsibility of Democrats to accept a spending agreement they had no input in drafting and which will - among other things - cause untold hardship for millions of Americans going forward. He has also resorted to various flimsy excuses for not swearing in new Arizona Representative Adelita Grijalva, almost certainly because she would cast the deciding vote in a House move to release the investigative files on disgraced sex offender Jeffrey Epstein ... files that many prominent citizens are anxious to keep buried.

Turning to the Senate, former Majority Leader Mitch McConnell - arguably more than any other majority leader in history - destroyed the Senate's reputation as "the world's greatest deliberative body." His hypocritical wielding of power gave Der Furor a decisive majority on the Supreme Court which has elevated the presidency to a near-dictatorship, stripped Congress of its authorities and prerogatives, and  eaten away at the freedoms Americans once enjoyed. In February of this year, after increasing concerns about his health and ability to continue serving, Mr McConnell announced he would not run for an eighth Senate term in 2026 and would retire from politics. He's already done enough damage.

Ladies and Gentlemen, Dear Readers, the On-Crack Ass Clown Award for October, 2025, is presented jointly to Newt Gingrich, Kevin McCarthy, Mike Johnson, and Mitch McConnell for their hard work and dedication in reducing - if not destroying - the authority and influence of Congress and empowering an imperial presidency.

Have a good day and be sure to remember the actions of todays winners and their ilk when you go to the polls. America is yours to save.

More thoughts tomorrow, when Cartoon Saturday tries to help you get over the news. See you then.

Bilbo

This Presidency Brought to You by the Letter "D"

The classic children's television show Sesame Street used many clever ideas to teach basic language and number concepts to young children. One often-used idea was to have individual shows sponsored by letters of the alphabet, for example: "Today's show is brought to you by the letter A, as in apple, antelope, and asparagus."

Following the Sesame Street lead, it occurs to me that Der Furor's administration is being sponsored by the letter D

as in ... 

Death (as a consequence of the destruction of our public health system by RFK, Jr, and an insistent refusal even to discuss measures to reduce the cost of health care);

Denial (consistently denying obvious reality in the face of all evidence to the contrary ... for instance, insisting that grocery prices are dropping when every family can see the opposite at the grocery store);

Destruction (of our national reputation as a reliable and honorable ally);

Demolition (of the East Wing of the White House, not to mention our traditions and standards of honest, representative government);

Defecation (who could have imagined a sitting president gleefully publishing an AI-generated video of himself as a king, bombing his citizens with excrement?);

Demagoguery (too many nasty words, too few useful ideas);

Despicable (the sort of bullying, narcissistic behavior demonstrated every day by Der Furor would have horrified the Founders, as it should horrify decent people everywhere);

Disaster (when it strikes, federal recovery aid depends on degree of demonstrated support for Der Furor);

Deployment (sending military forces into our cities in response to imagined or overhyped domestic threats);

Drugs (the go-to excuse for committing murder on the high seas without any offering of evidence); and, 

Duck (responsibility when things go sideways)

I could go on, but you get the idea.

And, speaking of Sesame Street, you may recall the time when Congress actually did its job according to the Constitution, debating bills and passing laws, as memorably explained in this classic video ...

I remember the good old days, when the writings of George Orwell and Margaret Atwood were still considered fiction.

Have a good day, and think carefully about the votes you cast in next week's elections and in the upcoming midterms. My grandchildren will have to live with what you do.

More thoughts coming.

Bilbo

Poetry Sunday

For our last Halloween themed Poetry Sunday of the year, we go back to one of America's most famous poets for a look at - what else? - haunted houses.

Haunted Houses

by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

All houses wherein men have lived and died

Are haunted houses. Through the open doors

The harmless phantoms on their errands glide,

With feet that make no sound upon the floors.

We meet them at the door-way, on the stair,

Along the passages they come and go,

Impalpable impressions on the air,

A sense of something moving to and fro.

There are more guests at table than the hosts

Invited; the illuminated hall

Is thronged with quiet, inoffensive ghosts,

As silent as the pictures on the wall.

The stranger at my fireside cannot see

The forms I see, nor hear the sounds I hear;

He but perceives what is; while unto me

All that has been is visible and clear.

We have no title-deeds to house or lands;

Owners and occupants of earlier dates

From graves forgotten stretch their dusty hands,

And hold in mortmain still their old estates.

The spirit-world around this world of sense

Floats like an atmosphere, and everywhere

Wafts through these earthly mists and vapours dense

A vital breath of more ethereal air.

Our little lives are kept in equipoise

By opposite attractions and desires;

The struggle of the instinct that enjoys,

And the more noble instinct that aspires.

These perturbations, this perpetual jar

Of earthly wants and aspirations high,

Come from the influence of an unseen star

An undiscovered planet in our sky.

And as the moon from some dark gate of cloud

Throws o’er the sea a floating bridge of light,

Across whose trembling planks our fancies crowd

Into the realm of mystery and night,—

So from the world of spirits there descends

A bridge of light, connecting it with this,

O’er whose unsteady floor, that sways and bends,

Wander our thoughts above the dark abyss.

Have a good day, enjoy the rest of your weekend, and be comforted by the knowledge that at least the former East Wing of the White House is no longer haunted.

More thoughts coming.

Bilbo

Cartoon Saturday

How many Saturdays does this &%@$! month have, anyhow?

Der Furor has demanded the Justice Department reimburse him $230 million - which he claims he would donate to charity* - as reparation for his previous federal investigations into himself and his family ... considering that it would have to be approved by his own personal lawyers who now run the DOJ, the Magic 8 Ball says that chances of success point to "yes;" the East Wing of the White House has been totally destroyed - without the least head-nod to laws, regulations, or historical preservation - to make room for Der Furor's gilded ballroom; the Defense Department escalated the administration's undeclared war against Venezuela by ordering an aircraft carrier battle group to the Caribbean; following a wave of reports of federal immigration officers driving cars without proper license plates, or modified plates, or of the same plate switched among multiple vehicles, the Illinois Secretary of State has created a tipline to collect and investigate license plate violations; and in Virginia, a woman lying injured in the street after being struck by a hit-and-run driver was killed when the police cruiser responding to the scene ran over her.

This week, our final Cartoon Saturday salute to the Halloween season features evil bloodsuckers other than those employed by the IRS to pursue taxpayers other than those in the top 1% ...

Touché! ...

Vampires and their cats, Take 1 ...

Vampires and their cats, Take 2 ...

Vampires and their cats, Take 3 ...

I've wondered about that, too ...

Oy, vey ...

Uh, oh ...

Reflections on a theme, so to speak ...

Even vampires pay attention to it ...

The nose knows before the fangs do ...

And that's it for the final Cartoon Saturday salute to the Halloween season, 2025 - I hope you enjoyed it.

Have a good day and a great weekend. More thoughts tomorrow, when we visit a haunted house for our final Poetry Sunday offering for the season. See you then!

Bilbo

* And, as the old saying goes, charity begins at home.

Great Moments in Editing and Signage

Last collection for the month of October ... let's get at 'em!

He probably needs the basic solutions first ...

You missed ...

That's a club I don't recognize ...

I hope it's for someone else ...

If you're into baking, you can't be too careful about the price of flour ...

Discount for MILFs? Why not?

I think we need to get a bunch of these stickers to paste all over the Capitol Building ...

I think RFK, Jr, is looking for studies that refute this ...

I hope it's a big enough table ...

Uh ... I hope the number was for hazardous waste cleanup ...

That's it for October's final collection of great moments - I hope it gave you a chuckle to offset all the bad news.

Have a good day, and come back tomorrow for the final Cartoon Saturday of the Halloween season, featuring evil bloodsucking demons. No, not loan sharks and ICE press gangs, vampires. See you then for more thoughts.

Bilbo